Jobs for grads

The following letter to the editor was published in The Globe and Mail, Tuesday September 9, 2014.

By Paul Davidson, president, Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

Employment rates for university grads across Canada are well on their way to pre-recession levels. In 2013, the average unemployment rates in the 25-29 age bracket were: 4.2 percent for university grads, 7 percent for trade graduates, 5.2 percent for college grads, 8.2 for high school graduates.

The average income of grads with BA’s from Canadian universities was $79,000 in 2010 for ages 25-64, compared to $60,000 for apprentices, $56,000 for college grads, $46,000 for other trades.

For humanities grads, average income was $64,300 in 2010 (rising quickly from $42,000 for recent grads aged 25-29). Graduates of computer and information sciences and social sciences had average earnings of more than $80,000 a year. In business and engineering, average earnings were close to $90,000 and $100,000 respectively.

The data consistently reinforces the value of a university degree in today’s economy.